In this state it is then trodden over by buffaloes, driven backward and forward in large gangs, until the mud is so thoroughly mixed that upon the withdrawal of the water it sinks to a perfect level.
Upon this surface the paddy, having been previously soaked in water, is now sown; and, in the course of a fortnight, it attains a height of about four inches.

The water is now again laid on, and continued at intervals until within a fortnight of the grain becoming ripe.

It is then run off; the ground hardens, the ripe crop is harvested by the sickle, and the grain is trodden out by buffaloes.

The rice is then separated from the paddy or husk by being pounded in a wooden mortar.
This is a style of cultivation in which the Cingalese particularly excel; nothing can be more beautifully regular than their flights of green terraces from the bottoms of the valleys to the very summits of the hills: and the labor required in their formation must be immense, is they are frequently six feet one above the other.

The Cingalese are peculiarly a rice-growing nation; give them an abundant supply of water and land on easy terms, and they will not remain idle..